Long Term Care Insurance

What is Long-Term Care?

Long-term care refers to a broad range of supportive medical, personal and social services needed by people who are unable to meet their basic living needs for an extended period of time. This may be caused by an accident, illness or frailty. Such conditions include the inability to move about, dress, bathe, eat, use a toilet, medicate and avoid incontinence. Also, care may be needed to help the disabled with household cleaning, preparing meals, shopping, paying bills, visiting the doctor, answering the phone and taking medications. Additional long-term care disabilities are due to cognitive impairment from stroke, depression, dementia, Alzheimer’s, Parkinson’s and so on. This support can be offered at home or in an institution.

The national median cost of care is over $75,000 a year (Cost of Care Survey, CareScout®, April 2010), and generally, long-term care is not covered by health insurance or Medicare. To determine the annual median cost of long-term care insurance, by metropolitan area or state, click here.

Long-term care insurance pays for expenses that are incurred when a person needs home care, or care at an assisted living, nursing home, adult day care or Hospice facility. Long-Term Care Insurance can help protect your assets, your family—the things you’ve worked hard to build.